2024 Hangar Theatre Design Fellowships

The Hangar Design Fellowship program launched in the early 2000s to aid in the development of the next generation of theatre designers, providing an opportunity for intensive hands-on training in a professional, repertory model experience. This program is designed to help bridge the gap between the educational and professional worlds. Hangar Design Fellows have the opportunity to explore, grow, think, collaborate, network, design, stretch, and most importantly – to learn by doing.

Design opportunities include:

• Costume Design
• Lighting Design
• Scenic Design
• Sound Design

One design fellow in each discipline will be selected to come and spend the summer in residence in Ithaca. Design Fellows design the KIDDSTUFF shows, and may have some opportunities to assist designers on the Mainstage.

Hangar Fellows Performance Series

The Hangar’s summer KIDDSTUFF Theatre for Young Audiences (TYA) series features plays and musicals selected especially for young audiences (usually ages 4-9) that include current popular titles and reimagined classics that reflect the diversity of backgrounds and viewpoints of today’s world.  2024 KIDDSTUFF productions will take place on the Hangar’s Outdoor Stage.

Collaborators

• Hangar Design Fellows work closely with Hangar Theatre Directing Fellows to conceive and create KIDDSTUFF and Wedge show design elements.
• As an assistant on Hangar Mainstage shows, Design Fellows assist experienced professional designers.
• Throughout the summer, Fellows work closely with various department heads and the production manager as they create designs. 

Learning Objectives

The greatest value of the Hangar Design Fellow program has always been the opportunity to learn by doing. As a 2018 participant observed, “To me the Hangar Design Fellowship was exciting and interesting because I could gain assistant experience with a number of designers, meet a whole host of people, be a part of a new theatre community, and design full productions…Over the course of the summer I gained so much confidence asking for the things I needed and learning how to communicate things in a way that would lead to work getting done well. I can’t express enough how valuable that has been in my career.”

Hangar Design Fellow can expect to:

• Enhance their understanding of organizational design and production parameters; working with a director and other designers to conceive of an execute a design idea; process the information discussed and discovered in design and production meetings in a useful and productive way.
• Improve practices for communicating artistic ideas and concepts with a team of theatre collaborators through graphic skills, language, and research.
• Develop tools to help prioritize work and understand how a production fits into a repertory season.
• Start the networking and collaboration process with other designers, directors, and technicians with whom they will continue to create theatre throughout their careers.

The Ithaca Area

Sitting on the southern tip of Cayuga Lake in the Finger Lakes Region of central New York, Ithaca is home to over 100 waterfalls within 10 miles of downtown, more restaurants per capita than New York City, two major universities, and a thriving arts scene, of which the Hangar is proud to be a part of. Company members who opt for housing will be housed in fully furnished rooms on a college campus in Tompkins County. Work-related transportation and regular trips to malls and grocery stores are provided, but Fellows that are able to bring their own cars are encouraged to do so.

Compensation

Fellowship compensation includes a weekly stipend of $425 and housing (if needed) for the duration of the residency and a travel stipend.

Dates

2024 Program Dates: July 1 – August 3, 2024

Apply Here

Any questions about the program can be directed to Shirley Serotsky, Producing Artistic Director, shirley@hangartheatre.org